Hobbyhorse



April 13, 1954 l.. E. REAMEs HOBBYHORSE Filed March 14, 1952 INVENToR. Lows E. QEAMES AT1-012 NEB/5 to a, maximum extent.

Patented Apr. 13, 1954 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE HOBBYHORSE Louis E. Reames, Lake Charles, La. Application March 14, 1952, `Serial No. 27 6,497

2 claims. 1

This invention relates to toys. More particularly, the invention has reference to a childs toy of the hobbyhorse type, readily formed in the simulation of an animal and having an up-anddown rocking motion when supporting a child.

One important object of the present invention is to provide a childs toy as stated, which is so designed as to be given its up-and-down motion by a novel means wherein the motion is maintained with the expenditure of a minimum amount of eiort on the part of the supported child.

Another important object is to provide a toy as stated wherein a child-supporting body is formed in the simulation of an animal, and is pivotally mounted upon a stationary base, said body being so arranged relative to a balance wheel as to cause the weight of the child to be balanced against a counterweight marginally located in the wheel, thereby to produce a smooth up-and-down motion on the part of the pivoted body of the device.

Yet another important object is to provide a toy as stated wherein the mechanical means employed for producing the desired motion of the body is substantially concealed, and is located where it will be unable to injure the child.

Still another important object is to provide a toy of the character referred to in which the several desirable objects stated above will be met, while still keeping the construction simple, durable, and capable of manufacture at relatively low cost.

Other objects will appear from the following l description, the claims appended thereto, and from the annexed drawing, in which like reference characters designate like parts throughout the several views, and wherein: n

Figure 1 is a top view of a toy formed in accordance with the present invention;

Figure 2 is a longitudinal sectional view taken substantially on line 2-2 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a transverse sectional view taken substantially on line 3-3 of Figure 2 and Figure 4 is an enlarged, detail sectional view taken substantially on line 4 4 of Figure 2.

The child-supporting toy formed in accordance with the present invention includes a stationary, supporting surface-engaging base designated generally by the reference numeral lil. The base, as Well as practically all other components of the toy, can be readily manufactured from ordinary wooden stock, thus to simplify the construction and assembly of said components The base l0 includes a at support plate I2 adapted to be positioned against a supporting surface S such as a door, the support plate l2 being of any desired outer coniiguration. In the present instance, as noted from Figure l, the front end portion of the support plate I2 is tapered, and rounded, to add to the attractiveness of the completed toy. However, this particular appearance can be varied as: desired.

Fixedly secured to the rear end portion of the base plate or support plate l2 are uprights i4, a pair of said uprights being provided. The uprights Hl are arranged vertically in parallel relation (Figure 3) and are spaced closely apart by means of a spacer block i6y mounted upon the support plate l2 at the lower ends of the uprights.

The base also includes a pair of horizontally disposed support members i8, the front; end portions of which are xedly attached to the support plate l2 and, if desired, to the respective up rights lll.

The support members l project rearwardly from the support plate l2 a substantial distance, as may be readily noted from Figure 2, thus to elongate the base substantially, for a purpose to be made apparent.

The front end portions of the respective support members It are received in angular recesses 2t formed in the inner edges of upstanding stir.. rup members 22, said members 22 being xedly secured at their lower ends to the support plate l2 and being arranged transversely of the support plate, in a common plane. At their upper ends, the stirrup members 22 are cut away as at 24, to provide recesses adapted to receive the feet of a child supported upon the toy.

Mounted upon and between the uprights i4 `is a balance wheel 26 of substantial diameter, said wheel being rotatably mounted upon said up rights. The balance wheel 26, as will be readily l noted from Figure 3 or Figure 4, is mounted upon a shaft 28, the wheel being iixed to the shaft for rotation therewith in any suitable manner.

The shaft 28 is journaled in bearings 30 provided in the respective uprights i4, and has its opposite ends projecting beyond the uprights in opposite directions. Fixed to` said projecting ends of the shaft 28 are the inner ends of cranks 32, said cranks rotating with the balance wheel 2S and being pivotally connected at their outer ends to pitmans 34. The pitmans 3B, in this connection, are pvotally connected at one end to the cranks 32, and at their other ends are piv- YISIS otally connected to the opposite sides of an animal-simulating body 36, by means of pins 38 or the ilke. Pin 38, the shaft 28, and stirrup recesses 24 all lie in a common vertical plane.

The balance wheel 26 is provided with a counterweight 40 at one location on its margin,

and it is believed important to note, in this regard, that the crank 32 extends from the wheel has been illustrated, but it will be readily understood that any other animal simulation desired can` be used, at the option of the manufacturer.

The side plates 44 are vertically arranged at opposite sides of the uprights I4, and are rigidly connected, in spaced, parallel relation by a hori- Zontal top crosspiece 46, and inclined, rear and front end crosspieces 48, 50 respectively.

To complete the simulation of the animal, the body 36 is provided with a head 52 which in the present instance is formed inthe simulation of the head of a horse, the body being. also provided, at its rear end, with a tail 54. A saddle 56 is xedly secured to the top crosspiece 46, intermediate the opposite ends thereof, so as to permit a child to be supported upon the body 36 at a location substantially medially disposed between the opposite ends of the body, and located above the balance wheel 26 and the pivotal connections 38 of the pitmans to the child-supportingr body.

i The head 52, preferably, is provided with a handle 58 which can be grasped by the supported child.

Extending between and journaled in the rear ends of the support members I8 is a pivot shaft 66,v said shaft extending through registering openings formed in the rear ends of the side plates 44 of the body 36, thus to pivotally connect said body to the base, for up-and-down swinging movement.

By reason of the construction illustrated and described, it will be seen that when a childs weight is supported upon the body 36, the upand-down rocking motion of the body will be initiated, since the weight of the child Will cause the balance wheel 26 to be rotated to a position in which the counterweight 4.0 is located at the upper limits of its travel. Thereafter, the child exerts a slight pressure against the stirrup members, to swing the body 36 upwardly oncey again, and the balance wheel will continue to rotate. Once the wheel isI set in motion, it` will tend to remain in motion, with a minimum amount of effort on the part of the child, and thus a smooth, easy, up-and-down movement of the animalsimulating body is obtained It will be noted, in this regard, that the weight of the child tends to balance. the counterweight 40, so as to reduce substantially the amount of effort to be expended by the child, and increase the smoothness of the rocking' motion.

VIt is desired, in thek preferred embodiment of the invention, to produce sounds simulating the hoofbeats of an animal, and to this end, I secure a plurality of lugs 62 to the periphery of the balance wheel 26. A block 64 is fixedly mounted Y upon the support plate l2 adjacent the periphery of the wheel, and. embedded at one end in the block is a flexible flap 66 of leather, rubber, or the like, the free end of said nap being disposed in the path of the circumferential series of lugs 62. As a result, when the wheel 26 rotates, the lugs 62 will strike the flap 66 in succession, causing slapping sounds simulating with considerable faithfulness the hoofbeats of a galloping animal. Y As will be seen from Figure 3, the lugs B2 are spaced irregularly about the periphery of the wheel and are conned to approximately 18,0 degrees thereof. As a result', since the wheel rotates 360 degrees with each up-and-down cycle of the body, the hoofbeat-simulating sounds will be produced only during half of each body cycle. This adds considerably to the faithfulness of the simulation. In this connection, it will be seen that there are only three lugs 52, these being spaced irregularly about the periphery ofthe wheel in an arrangement which causes a single sound to be made, followed after a brief interval by two more sounds made in rapid succession. This sequence is quite close to that produced by the hoofbeats of a galloping horse.

Although the toy illustrated and described herein is shown as having acounterbalanced Y wheel, the counterbalan'ce need not benecessarily placed in a circular member such as the wheel 26. Instead, it could be mounted upon the free end of an arm having its other end xedly secured to the shaft 28. This modication is believed suiciently obvious as not to require special illustration. Y V

It is believed clear that the invention is not necessarily 'confined to the specific use or uses thereof described albove, since it may be utilized for any purpose to which it may be suited. Nor is the invention to be necessarily limited to the specific construction illustrated and described, since such construction is only intended to be illustrative of the principles cnf operation and the means presently devised to carry out said principles, it being considered that the invention comprehends any minor changes in construction that may be permitted within the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

l. In a childs toy of the hobbyhorse type, a stationary, supporting surface-engaging, base, said base including a pair of spaced uprights disposed intermediate opposite ends thereof and a pair of upstanding, spaced, stirrup members rigid with said uprights and having recesses adapted to receive the feet of a child; a balance-wheel mounted upon and @between the uprights for rotation in a vertical'plane, said wheel including a counterweight marginally located thereon; a crank secured to the wheel and extendingfro'm the wheel center in a direction away from the counterweight; a body pivotally connected at one end to one end of the base for swinging movement in a vertical plane and having its intermediate portion spaced vertically of and above the wheel and adaptedv for supporting a child; and a pitman connected at its opposite ends to' said intermediate portion and crank respectively with its connection to the intermediate portion being spaced vertically of and above the center of rotation OLE the wheel, whereby to impart to the body, responsive to rotation of the wheel, an upand-down rocking motion controlled by balancing o-f the ccunterweight against the weight of the supported child, said recesses of the stirrup members, the wheel center of rotation, and connection of the pitman to the intermediatey portion, all lying substantially in a common vertical plane.

2. In a childs toy of the hobbyhorse type, a stationary, supporting surface-engaging, base; a wheel mounted upon the base for rotation in a vertical plane; a crank secured to the wheel; a body formed in the simulation of an animal and pivotally connected at one end to the base for swinging movement in a vertical plane, said body having its intermediate portion disposed above the Wheel and adapted for supporting a child; a ptman connected at its opposite ends to said intermediate portion and crank respectively, whereby to impart an up-and-down rocking motion to the body simultaneously with rotation of the wheel, said body moving through a single up-and-down cycle on each rotation of the wheel through 360g; a series of spaced lugs mounted upon the periphery of the wheel, said lugs being References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,077,183 Zetschok Oct. 28, 1913 1,331,948 Wecht Feb. 24, 1920 2,455,548

Bell Dec. '7, 1948 

